I carefully joined him on the bed, and he wrapped his arms around me. “There’s no right or wrong way to feel, but I think you’re getting stuck on the familial aspect. Yes, Ben was your half brother, but you didn’t know him. You two didn’t grow up together and never spent any time together. Essentially, he was a stranger to you.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I said and smoothed my hand over his chest.
“You’ve been through a lot the last few days,” he added. “It’s okay to be okay, but it’s also okay to not be okay.”
“Is it okay to be sleepy?” I asked and stifled a yawn. Yawning with fractured ribs was a special kind of hell I didn’t want to experience again.
“I hope so, because I’m right there with you. Are you ready for bed?”
“No, but I don’t think I can make myself get out of this bed to get ready,” I admitted. I was exhausted. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if I skipped brushing my teeth and slept in the clothes I was wearing.
“Lucky for you, you don’t have to.”
Before I could ask what he meant, someone knocked on the door.
“Come in,” he called out.
Landon walked into the room and smiled. “Well, aren’t you two just the cutest little black-eyed peas?”
“Landon,” I admonished.
“What? Too soon?” he chuckled.
I shook my head. “You’re awful.”
“You love me,” he said and clapped his hands together once. “Now, where are your clothes? I’m here to get you ready for bed.”
“What did you do?” I asked Grant.
“He called for help,” Landon answered for him. “But you need to hurry it up and let me help you because Lance will be here with your bedtime snack momentarily.”
I pointed to the bag with my clothes, and Landon made quick work of helping me change into my pajamas. He also plugged our phones in, placed bottles of water on each nightstand, and made sure our pain pills were within reach. Then, Lance walked in with peanut butter and jam sandwiches, crackers, cheese, and grapes.
“Thank you,” I said and greedily reached for a sandwich. I didn’t even realize I was hungry until food was placed in front of me.
“Clearly, the speech I planned to give you about not taking pain medications on an empty stomach is not needed,” Landon teased.
“Definitely not needed. Vomiting doesn’t pair well with the broken bones we have,” I said between bites.
“That’s for damn sure,” Grant agreed.
“I’m glad we’re joking about all this, but seriously, how are y’all doing?” Landon asked.
“Right now, I’m sore and exhausted,” I said.
“It’s about the same for me,” Grant said.
“How’s Kalen?” I asked. “I hope he hasn’t been giving you too much trouble.”
Landon waved his hand dismissively. “He’s been a perfect little angel. He went down for the night without any problems.”
“Thank you for taking care of him.”
Landon rolled his eyes. “I’m your best friend. You don’t have to thank me for doing my job.” He reached out and gently squeezed my hand. “Try to get some sleep. I’m right down the hall if you need me.”
“You’re the best,” I said softly.
He grinned. “I know. Aren’t you lucky?”
